Chapter 52

"Old man, I am talking about this matter. Cheng Gong brought the several captives back to the city and interrogated the people of the Ding family. The Ding family sacrificed a subordinate to take the blame and promised to donate 20,000 strings of coins to the government for good deeds. Only then did Cheng Gong let them off." Saying this, Zhu Huan smiled with satisfaction.

There are many wealthy families in Yan Prefecture.

However, its geographical location is too forward, and the actual economic development of Yan Prefecture is not as advanced as that of Fu Prefecture behind it.

There are many wealthy families, but not many top tycoons.

Moreover, this wealth does not mean liquid funds. They have houses, workshops, land, carriages, cattle, sheep, gold, and silver jewelry. Think about the impact of the Ding family paying 20,000 strings of coins.

Without money, there is no power. If the Zhu and Zhao families take the opportunity to join forces and suppress them, the Ding family might quickly decline.

Wang Ju frowned.

"Wang Xiaolang, this is also what you call the rules. Cheng Gong can investigate further, but that would cause panic among the wealthy families. They have already paid 20,000 strings of coins and sent someone to take the blame. Cheng Gong can explain it away. I heard that Cheng Gong used this money to distribute to the laborers building the roads."

Originally, this was a duty, unpaid labor.

Now, with 20,000 strings of coins as compensation, each laborer might receive four strings of coins, which is a pleasant surprise, whether it is a duty or a recruitment. The road is built, the people are happy, and the political achievements are there.

He did a very good job.

As for what Wang Ju feels, does it matter?

Even if Wang Ju can eventually be listed at the Donghua Gate, he may not reach Cheng Kan's level. He has been a Censor-in-Chief and a Deputy Chief of the Privy Council. Poor Old Bao is still just a Three-Bill Office Commissioner and will only become a Deputy Chief of the Privy Council a few months later.

But Wang Ju is not happy inside.

He sat on the grass and thought for a while, then asked, "How did the Ding family and your two families become enemies?"

"That was still during the Xianping era. The Zhao family and the Ding family were better off than my family at that time, already wealthy households in Yan Prefecture. When the court was at war with Li Jiqian, the wealthy families in the city led the laborers to transport grain to the front lines. They were ambushed halfway. The great-great-grandfather of the Zhao family, who was the head of the Zhao family at the time, was killed. But later, according to the people who escaped, the head of the Ding family was captured by the Western Xia and betrayed everyone, leading to the death of the head of the Zhao family. The Zhao family was not satisfied and filed a lawsuit. The Prefect at the time, Liu Tingwei, executed the head of the Ding family as a warning. The enmity between the two families has been unresolved ever since."

"Ah, I see."

The Ding family might have been wronged, or they might not have been. They were executed.

This has nothing to do with Wang Ju.

But he should not bear this enmity, and even more so, the Wang family should not have suffered so many deaths.

A stone thrown into the water not only causes a splash but also ripples. If others also throw stones, the ripples will grow larger.

So, one wrong step often leads to more wrong steps. But if one puts effort into resolving it, major issues can be reduced to minor ones, and minor ones can be resolved.

The battle at Heao Ridge has caused too many subsequent waves. Wang Ju does not want to cause more trouble.

But he wants to become a disciple of Zhang Zai, which means he will soon leave Wang Family Village. At that time, the Ding family will become a major threat to the village.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Dong Gong, I have an idea to make things worse for them."

"Oh, tell me about it."

"Why do they collude with the Western Xia? One is to take revenge on me, and the other is for the sword-making techniques of the Xia Kingdom. How about..." Wang Ju whispered.

"That's a good idea."

However, Zhu Huan shivered for no reason. The Ding family is in trouble; they have offended someone they shouldn't have.

...

Shi Gan looked into the distance.

Compared to when he first arrived last year, Wang Family Village has become much more vibrant. The dozens of hills in the distance are all green. Alfalfa, the king of forage, is not only high in protein but also has a strong vitality.

A spring rain fell, and these little grasses instantly turned the mountains green.

All the villagers are learning from Wang Ju.

Of course, settled grazing is more significant than nomadic grazing, but due to the terrain of Yan Prefecture, Wang Ju is not very enthusiastic.

However, it will take another month to harvest.

During this time, the sheep in the village will continue to suffer, eyeing the young beans and millet. The villagers have no choice but to cut wild bamboo to continue building fences, and even Wang Ju joined in.

"Xiaolang, studying is still the most important thing for you."

"Uncle Shi, a combination of work and rest, and a balance between tension and relaxation, is the best way to study. If you bury yourself in books all day, even with strong self-discipline, you will find it boring. How can you learn well when you are bored? Besides, appropriate labor is also beneficial to the body."

Shi Gan did not quite understand. Throughout history, scholars have found many excuses to avoid hard work, such as "a gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall," "scholars should stay away from the kitchen," and so on.

"I have to go." Even if the emperor has a secret order, I have found the person, confirmed it, and do not want to stay in this miserable place for a long time.

"Oh, you are not looking for that person anymore."

"Why should I look for him? He will eventually serve the court." Shi Gan said tentatively.

"Yes, serving the court and gaining fame and fortune is the right path. It's not that he doesn't come out; it might just be the wrong time."

"Do you admit it?"

"What do I admit? Even if I admit it, do you dare say it was me? Don't forget, I am fourteen this year and was only thirteen last year." Wang Ju said slyly.

The battle at Wang Family Village has already made some people guess that the battle on the mountain road last year was done by the people of Wang Family Village. It was because this young man participated that the dozens of soldiers who turned into bandits were defeated.

However, exposing this now might affect Wang Ju's future career, but it's not a big problem.

Under Xue Xiang's leadership and the influence of last year, the wealthy families have voluntarily reduced their private salt operations. Cheng Kan did not dare to push them too hard. The case from last year has already been closed. Only a naive person would reopen it, and even if they did, it might not be useful and could even put themselves in a difficult position. Cheng Kan is definitely not naive.

As for the Black Bee Bandits, most were killed or captured, and only three leaders have not been caught. They might have really escaped, but would they dare return to Yan Prefecture?

The issue is not military talent.

After Wang Ju repeatedly brainwashed him, Shi Gan also acknowledged that achieving military merit in the Song Dynasty is not a good thing, mostly a bad thing. So, Han Qi, Fan Zhongyan, Pang Ji, and Wen Yanbo stayed in Shaanxi for years, either without success or with great defeats, yet their careers soared. Zhang Kang had great achievements, and he had a famous older brother, Zhang Kui, but was still slandered by a group of scholars, and his position became smaller. Di Qing had great achievements, and the emperor protected and promoted him, but he eventually died from a back abscess due to the anger of a group of scholars. If Zhang and Di had achieved even greater military success, their fates might have been even worse.

Di Qing is fine; he is a general, so he is destined to be unfortunate.

But Zhang Kang is a scholar.

Actually, this view is a bit hasty.

Positioning him as a general or a military official is not quite right. However, Zhang Kang's misfortune has deeper reasons.

First, compared to Han and Fan, his literary talent is not enough. In the Song Dynasty, good writing leads to greater success. So, no matter how intense the party struggles, Su Dongpo, the most unpopular moderate, remained active in the Song political arena.

Second, since the struggle against Lu began, these people gradually formed a group. Although many of them are young and naive, naive young people are not scary; knowledgeable naive young people are. When Lu Yijian fell ill and could no longer govern, these people taking power was inevitable. Wang Ju has a very negative view of the Qingli Reforms, but many of the measures were good, at least not as radical as Wang Anshi's reforms. However, because there were too many of them, they bit each other like madmen, making everyone hate them. The most amusing scene is that everyone bit together, making it impossible to speak out, and thus the Water City was created, where they bit themselves.

This actually led to a vague party struggle, the "villain" party and the "scholar" party.

Zhang Kang is neither a "villain" nor a "scholar," but his military achievements made the "scholars and villains" feel ashamed, so they had to defame him!

Wang Zhao is the same. He was promoted by Wang Anshi, and although he succeeded, he also failed, leading to his death from a back abscess, which was cruelly cursed by a group of scholars as a result of killing too many people, almost to the point of exhuming and whipping his corpse.

But it is not absolute. Zhang Jie was safe and sound. However, do not forget that Zhang Jie had an incredibly powerful cousin, Zhang Dun!

However, even if military achievements are a burden, one thing cannot be ignored.

That is the treasure case last year, which is about people's livelihood and internal governance. If a wise person had not intervened and led the Western Xia to Yan Prefecture, the entire northeast region of Yan Prefecture might have been in turmoil, and the Song might have succeeded in bringing the Western Xia army to Yan Prefecture, leading to its complete loss.

At that time, Cheng Kan was very anxious.

However, the question arises.

Does this mean that the senior officials of the Song Dynasty are not as capable as a thirteen-year-old boy?

Shi Gan could not help but smile bitterly.

Regardless, he will report everything he has seen and heard to the emperor and let the emperor judge.

The two looked at each other.

Wang Ju wanted to say something: Emperor Renzong, don't count on your son... but he did not dare to say it. Who would believe him? If he said it, not only would it be ineffective, but the clumsy Cao Dame, the stubborn Gao Dame, and the obstinate Emperor Yingzong might find a way to get rid of him. As for the Western Xia side, it would be too late to say anything.

Shi Gan also wanted to say something: Don't stay in this small village; go to the prefectural school and study hard. That is your right path. However, thinking about the prefectural school in Yan Prefecture, it might not be as good as this young man studying on his own.

So, neither of them said anything.

"May you have a smooth journey."

"You must take care of yourself."